Ricotta and spinach are a classic combination in Italian cooking, especially as a stuffing for ravioli. It also works great with a ‘pink’ tomato sauce, which means a tomato sauce that is mixed with either cream or white sauce (besciamella). You could make ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach and serve them with such a pink sauce. Here I have turned it into lasagna instead. This is a very elegant dish (if you serve a modest portion) with a wondeful velvety flavor and texture.

I used to precook fresh pasta sheets for making lasagna, but have tried it without precooking, and as long as all the pasta is covered with sauce, it will cook in the sauce. It is less work and I prefer the the texture that is slightly more al dente.

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6 as primo piatto

• 675 grams (1.5 lbs) fresh spinach
• 3 eggs, 1 of them separated
• 225 grams (1 1/2 cup) Italian 00 flour
• 250 grams (1 cup) ricotta
• 1 can (400 grams/14 oz) peeled tomatoes
• 100 grams (1 1/3 cup) freshly grated parmigiano reggiano, divided
• freshly grated nutmeg
• 250 ml (1 cup) milk
• 50 grams (4 Tbsp) butter, divided
• 25 grams (2 1/2 Tbsp) flour
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Make fresh pasta dough using 2 eggs, 1 egg white, and about 225 grams of Italian 00 flour, according to my instructions. Wrap the dough in cling film and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

In the meantime, puree 400 grams of peeled tomatoes with their juices using a blender or food processor, and pour into a wide pan. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, ring to a boil, then simmer, stirring regularly…

…until the sauce is no longer ‘bleeding’ clear liquid as in this photo…

…but is nice and thick. Turn off the heat.

Wash 675 grams of spinach if needed and place it in a pot while it is still wet. If the spinach is already washed, add some water to the pot. Cover the pot and bring to a boil.

Boil the spinach until it has wilted, stirring one or twice. This will only take a few minutes.

Drain the spinach using a colander, and allow it to cool off.

Place the spinach in the center of an old but clean tea towel…

…and wrap the tea towel around it like a piece of candy, twisting in reverse directions on both ends. Keep twisting to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

The spinach should end up quite dry and about half the original weight.

Combine the spinach in the bowl of a food processor together with 250 grams ricotta, 75 grams of freshly grated parmigiano reggiano, 1 egg yolk, salt, freshly ground black pepper, and some freshly grated nutmeg.

Process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Make a white sauce from 250 ml milk, 25 grams butter, and 25 grams flour, using my instructions.

Add the white sauce to the tomato sauce.

Stir until homogeneous. Season the pink sauce to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Grease a rectangular 20 x 30 cm (8 x 12 inch) or square 20 x 20 cm (8 x 8 inch) oven proof dish with 12.5 grams of butter.

Roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets, and place them on a floured work surface so they don’t get stuck.

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F (not fan forced).

If using a 20 x 30 rectangular dish, use 4 layers of pasta, 3 layers of spinach, and 1 layer of pink sauce: from below this means pasta, 1/3 of the spinach, pasta, 1/3 of the spinach, pasta, 1/3 of the spinach, pasta, all of the pink sauce.

If using a 20 x 20 square dish, use 6 layers of pasta, 4 layers of spinach, and 2 layers of pink sauce: from below this means pasta, 1/4 of the spinach, pasta, 1/4 of the spinach, pasta, 1/2 of the pink sauce, pasta, 1/4 of the spinach, pasta, 1/4 of the spinach, pasta, 1/2 of the pink sauce.

Cut the sheets with a knife or scissors and line the bottom of the buttered dish with pasta sheets.

Place one portion of spinach on the pasta sheets.

Spread it out into an even layer with a silicone spatula, making sure to spread it all the way to the edge of the pasta sheets.

Cover with another layer of pasta sheets, cutting them to size to fill up the space in a single layer.

Finish with a layer of pink sauce…

…which also should be spread out all the way to the edge of the pasta.

Sprinkle the top evenly with 25 grams (1/3 cup) of freshly grated parmigiano, and dot with the remaining 12.5 grams of butter.

Bake the lasagna for about 30 minutes at 200C/400F, or until it is bubbling and the top is slightly charred.

Allow the lasagna to cool off for a couple of minutes before serving. This serves two purposes: (1) it is easier to serve the lasagna as it has cooled off a bit, and (2) there is less risk of burning your tongue.

Wine pairing

This is nice with a dry and full-bodied rosé.